17
Agronomists & Field Trial Specialists trained
Across BASF Digital Farming's xarvio Field Manager team, spanning both technical and field-facing roles.
Customer Story
How BASF Digital Farming strengthened geospatial expertise through STAC and interactive learning
A tailored three-week programme developed by thriveGEO gave BASF Digital Farming’s Agronomists and Field Trial Specialists a deeper understanding of geospatial concepts, satellite data products, the SpatioTemporal Asset Catalog (STAC), and interactive notebook-based workflows.
Chat with usParticipants
17 trained
Agronomists + Field Trial Specialists
Programme
3 weeks
Tailored hybrid learning
Discovery
13 interviews
Roles, workflows + learning needs
Confidence
3/5 → 5/5
Geospatial knowledge
Technical focus
STAC + notebooks
Internal data access + workflows
From 3/5 to 5/5
Team confidence raised
Overall confidence in geospatial knowledge increased from 3 / 5 before the training to 5 / 5 after the training.
↑ Technical competency
STAC skills gained
Agronomists and Field Trial Specialists were introduced to the SpatioTemporal Asset Catalog and practically accessed data from xarvio’s internal STAC Catalog.
The Opportunity
Creating a shared understanding of geospatial data and technology across BASF Digital Farming
About BASF Digital Farming
Client: BASF Digital Farming GmbH
BASF Digital Farming develops and offers xarvio Field Manager , an advanced digital platform that transforms farm data, weather data, as well as data from plant growth, pest and disease models into actionable agronomic insights.
Earth observation and geospatial technologies play an important role in creating these products and supporting their application in agricultural contexts.
TRAINING OBJECTIVE
A shared technical foundation across agronomy, field trial and geospatial roles.
BASF Digital Farming wanted to create a shared understanding of geospatial data and technology across a team of Agronomists and Field Trial Specialists.
“This training enabled the team to build a shared technical foundation that enables more detailed conversations about data quality, spatial and temporal characteristics, processing methods, product capabilities, and appropriate applications.”
Why this mattered
To strengthen collaboration between agronomy, field trial, and geospatial specialists, BASF Digital Farming partnered with thriveGEO to establish a shared understanding of the concepts, technologies, and workflows behind xarvio’s satellite data products.
The goal was not simply to introduce new geospatial terminology, but to help participants understand how satellite data, geospatial processing and data-access workflows connect with the products and agronomic questions they work with.
Learning focus
The programme connected geospatial fundamentals, satellite data products, STAC and interactive notebook-based workflows directly to BASF Digital Farming’s own data and agricultural context.
The programme focused particularly on helping participants understand:
- How satellite observations are transformed into agronomically relevant information
- The fundamental geospatial concepts behind xarvio’s products
- How data products are structured, described, and discovered through STAC
- How interactive notebooks can be used to explore, access, visualise, and analyse geospatial data
- How geospatial processing workflows connect with agronomic use cases and product development
The Solution
A tailored programme built around BASF Digital Farming’s data and workflows
thriveGEO began the collaboration with a full-day, in-person discovery workshop. Thirteen interviews with Agronomists, Field Trial Specialists, and geospatial specialists provided insight into participants’ roles, existing workflows, practical interests, and the ways satellite data is used across the organisation.
The workshop and interviews enabled thriveGEO to design a bespoke three-week hybrid programme titled “Geospatial Fundamentals at xarvio.” Rather than presenting geospatial technology in isolation, the programme connected every topic to BASF Digital Farming’s products, processing workflows, and agronomic context.
Programme design
A three-week hybrid learning pathway combining self-paced modules with in-person discovery and practical learning, grounded in xarvio’s satellite data products, internal STAC Catalog, processing workflows and agronomic use cases.
01
Starting with discovery
HOW thriveGEO STARTED
The collaboration began with a full-day, in-person discovery workshop to understand how geospatial information and satellite data were already being used across BASF Digital Farming.
02
Understanding roles and workflows
13 interviews
Interviews with Agronomists, Field Trial Specialists and geospatial specialists surfaced participants’ roles, existing workflows, practical interests and the ways satellite data is used across the organisation.
03
Building a structured learning pathway
Five progressive modules
Five consistent modules built participants up progressively, from Earth observation fundamentals and core geospatial concepts through understanding and applying satellite data to discovering and accessing xarvio’s own data products through its STAC Catalog.
04
Creating a common vocabulary across roles
Shared foundation
Self-paced online modules brought Agronomists and Field Trial Specialists from different technical backgrounds to a shared starting point, helping close the gap between specialist and non-specialist knowledge.
05
Introducing the SpatioTemporal Asset Catalog
STAC in practice
Participants explored how STAC catalogs, collections, items, assets and metadata work together, building a detailed understanding of how xarvio’s data products can be described, searched, discovered and accessed consistently.
06
Moving from concepts to hands-on practice
Practical application
The learning pathway culminated in a one-day, in-person practical workshop at BASF Digital Farming’s headquarters, where participants gained hands-on experience accessing data from xarvio’s internal STAC Catalog.
The Results
More confident teams, faster innovation
Post-training feedback confirmed the programme closed the gaps identified in the original needs assessment: improved cross-team communication and training participants empowered to access internal data – opening the door to more exploration and innovation across teams. Their improved understanding supports informed conversations about product suitability, data interpretation, and the relationship between satellite-derived information and agricultural decision-making.
Confidence in geospatial knowledge
Overall team confidence increased from 3 / 5 before the training to 5 / 5 after completing the programme.
Clearer technical readiness
By the end of the programme, participants were empowered to run fundamental geospatial analyses in QGIS or Python, replicating BASF Digital Farming's internal processing workflows themselves.
Stronger product fluency
Participants are able to explain with more confidence the characteristics, benefits, and limitations of key xarvio data products to colleagues and customers.
Participant Voices
In their own words
Participants highlighted the accessible design, practical examples and applied learning that helped make complex geospatial concepts easier to understand and use.
Accessible concepts
“Amazing work! I really like the design and use of different types of visualization and explanation.”Participant feedback
Applied, not just theoretical
“‘Applied’ knowledge development, practical examples, and fundamentals delivered in a consumable way – those were the real strengths of the course.”Participant feedback
Business Impact
Connecting geospatial technology with agronomic expertise
The programme brought geospatial and agronomic perspectives together. Participants are now able to connect the technical characteristics of satellite data with the agricultural questions those products are designed to address.
Core impact
Technical geospatial knowledge becomes more valuable when it connects directly with agronomic expertise.
Supporting effective cross-functional collaboration. A shared understanding of geospatial terminology, STAC, and data workflows enables teams to discuss requirements, products, and applications with greater precision.
A foundation for innovation. The team is now equipped to explore satellite data independently, opening the door to new ideas and use cases across BASF Digital Farming.
Shared geospatial language
Cross-functional collaboration
Independent data exploration
Tailored learning for geospatial teams
Looking for similar results in your own team?
thriveGEO designs tailored learning programmes that build confidence, shared language, and practical capability across technical and cross-functional teams.